Horn-reed



l. MARKS.

HORN REED.

APPLICATION FILED OCT-5.1920.

1,390,305. PatentedSept. 13, 1921.

I n/g/en/tor ISIDORE MARKS, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

HORN-REED.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Isroonn MARKS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dorchester, Boston, in the county of Suflolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Horn- Reeds, and I'do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

. The present invention relates to horn reeds and more particularly to reeds for use in toy horns.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an improved horn reed having separate component parts which may be manufactured at a minimum cost and quickly and easily assembled.

To the accomplishment of this object and such others as may hereinafter appear, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, the invention consists in the improved construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims- In the drawings, illustrating what is now considered the preferred embodiment of the invention, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional View of a toy horn provided with the improved reed; and Figs. 2, 3 and 4 are detail perspective views of the several component partsof the reed before being assembled.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, the improved horn reed comprises a tongue or vibrator 5, a cooperating throat piece 6, and a reed block or holder 7, in which the tongue and throat piece are mounted. The reed block 7 is fitted within the small end of the horn 8 and may be secured thereto by any suitable means.

The tongue 5 consists of a piece of thin brass or other suitable material of slightly tapering form. The smaller end of the tongue has a rounded margin, while the larger end of the tongue is shaped as shown in Fig. 2, having slight marginal extensions 9 at opposite sides thereof.

The throat piece 6 is trough-shaped having a substantially semi-circular cross-sectional contour. As shown in Fig. 3, one end of the throat piece is open while the opposite end thereof is closed by a convex end Specification of Letters Patent.

-will be enlarged slightly Patented sept. 13, rear.

Application filed October 5, 1920. Serial No. 414,747.

wall 10. The sides of the throat piece converge slightly toward the closed end to conform to the taper of the tongue. An outwardly turned flange 11 extends along the margin of the throat piece, at the opposite sides and closed end thereof. This marginal flange 11 is shaped as clearly illustrated in Fig. 3, all portions of the flange lying in the same plane.

The real block or holder 7, as shown in Fig.4, consists of a disk of substantial thick ness having a central opening 12 adapted to receive the throat piece and the tongue. To this end the opening 12 is substantially semiclrcular in outline, and has approximately the same radius of curvature as the sides of the throat piece. The disk 7 is further provided with narrow cuts or notches 13 ex tending laterally from the opening 12 at oppositely disposed points in the wall there of. These notches 13 are adapted to receive the opposite ends of the flange 11 of the throat piece and the lateral extensions 9 of the tongue. In order that said parts may be tightly gripped and firmly pressed together when forced into said notches, thelatter are made sufliciently narrow to insure that they by the insertion therein of the tongue and throat piece flange. The side walls of the notches 13 on the opposite side of the disk from the semi-circular wall of the opening 12 are connected by a slightly concave wall 14. lVith this construction the outer face of the tongue and the adjacent wall of the opening 12 will be separated, between the tongue extensions 9, by an open space, the advantage of which will be hereinafter explained.

In assembling the parts of the reed, the tongue 5 and the throat piece 6 are first held together manually in the relative positions in which they appear in Fig. 1. The rounded ends of these parts .are then slipped into the opening 12 in the disk 7 and forced through said opening until the opposite ends thereof are substantially flush with one face of the disk. The tongue, the throat piece, and the disk opening 12 are so proportioned that when the tongue and throat piece are assembled and forced into said opening they will fit tightly therein so as to be frictionally held in contact with each other and with the disk. The tongue will then be securely held in position opposite the open side of the throat piece so that it is adapted to produce sound when vibrated by blowing the horn. Advantageously the disk 7 may be made of relatively yielding or comsaid parts will be securely held in assembled position. After the disk 7 is secured in place in the interior of the horn, the projecting portions of the tongue and throat piece will be confined in a chamber formed between the disk and the mouth piece 15 of the horn, so that they will be protected from liability of accidental displacement.

In reeds of the above-described general character, as heretofore constructed, the tongue is liable to buckle or arch transversely toward the interior of the throat piece. A tongue thus buckled will not vibrate properly and consequently the horn will not sound properly when blown. In the present construction, by reason of the open space provided between the tongue and the adjacent wall 14 of the disk opening 12, there is no tendency for the tongue to buckle in the objectionable manner above set forth and thus interference with the proper vibration of the tongue will be avoided.

It will be seen that a reed constructed in accordance with the present inventionlmav be very cheaply manufactured, and the parts thereof quickly and easily assembled. When assembled, they are securely held together without the use of solder or other fastening means.

While it is preferred to employ the specific construction and arrangement of parts shown and described, it Wlll be understood that this construction and arrangement is not essential except so far as specified in the claims, and may be changed or modified without departing from the spirit and true scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new, is,--

1. A horn reed comprising a tongue having marginal extensions adjacent one end, a trough-shaped throat piece having amarginal outwardly extending flange, and a disk composed of compressible material having a substantially semi-circular openlng with cuts extending in opposite directions therefrom, the opening between the walls of said cuts outer face of the being less than the combined thickness of the marginal portions of the tongue and throat piece, the throat piece and tongue being mounted in the disk opening with the tongue at the open side of the throat piece and the flange of the throat piece and the marginal extensions of the tongue held in contact with each other in said cuts by frictional contact with the disk caused by compression of its material.

2. A horn reed comprising a metallic trough-shaped throat piece having a marginal outwardly extending flange, a metallic tongue associated therewith of a width to engage saidfiange, and areed block comprising a fiber disk adapted to be secured within the horn tube and having a central opening of substantially the cross-section of the throat piece, and'opposite cuts extending in alinement from the walls of said opening of a length adapted to receive the overlying margins ofsaid tongue and throat piece, but of less width than the combined thickness of said margins, whereby when the reed is assembled the walls of the cuts in the fiber disk are wedged apart by the thicker margins of the metallic tongue and throat piece.

8. A horn reed comprising a tongue, a trough-shaped throat piece having a marginal outwardly extending flange, and a disk having an opening with a substantially semicircular wall and oppositely disposed notches extending outwardly in opposite directions from said opening, the tongue and the throat piece being mounted in the opening in the disk with the tongue closing the open side of the throat piece and the flange of the throat piece and marginal portions of the tongue'held in contact with each other by insertion within said ing having a wall opposed to said substantially somi circular wall which is shaped to provide an open space between the outer face of the tongue and the disk when the parts are assembled.

a. A reed block for sound producing toys comprising a disk having an opening define by a substantially semi-circular wall, the walls of a pair ofnotches extending outwardly in opposite directions from said opening at the opposite ends'of said wall, and a concave wall connecting the walls of said notches whici are opposite those connected by said semi-circular wal l ISIDORE MARKS. 

